


Aftermath

by Gigi



Category: Supernatural
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-01-19
Updated: 2011-01-19
Packaged: 2017-10-14 21:45:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/153781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gigi/pseuds/Gigi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What would the aftermath bring.<br/>“You are not allowed to die, Dean Winchester.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Aftermath

**Author's Note:**

> Summary:   
> _"The strength of a family, like the strength of an army, is in its loyalty to each other."_  
>  Notes: This is my take end of season five.

He welcome the darkness that settled over him, quieting his mind and hushing out the pain that was thick in his bones.

When he next woke, Castiel was holding him in his arms, but how different he looked through Dean's tired eyes, he looked almost scared. The Angel's eyes were wet with tears he couldn't have been crying. Angels don't cry, or at least he's never seen them cry. He's seen them scream, fight, die, but never cry.

 

“You are not allowed to die, Dean Winchester.”

 

The words shocked him because he didn't mean to die, just to sleep awhile because he was so damned tired. His voice sounded weak and raw to him when he mumbled an 'O'kay'. To answer the Angel. The dark-haired Angel lifted him from the ground, holding him as one would a child. It was enough to make Dean want to bitch that he wasn't some girl. He tried to move, to get out of the other's arms but his body protested with a bolt of pain.

 

“Stay still,” Castiel commanded. It was just as stern as the order not to die. He tried to remember what had lead to so much pain, what happened that had the Angel so upset with him. It hit him just as the darkness took him again; this time he didn't welcome it because at that very moment he was screaming his brother's name.

 

~~~~~

 

Bobby sat back in his wheelchair just looking at the crestfallen angel. When Castiel turned up on his door carrying not one, but two broken Winchesters, he knew the boys had done something amazing stupid. “I got a doctor friend comin' to check them over, you should of taken them to the hospital.”

 

“It wasn't safe. Here is warded. Nothing can come after them here. Dean would've wanted to be here.” Bobby listened to the angel wondering if it could age for the man looked like he'd aged at least ten years since they'd last met. It could be the worry that was lining the angel's face.

 

“Fine, but if they die, it's on your feathery head.” He knew he sounded bitter but he couldn't keep that out of his voice - nor did he really want to.

 

~~~~~

 

Sammy never knew that his hair could hurt.

 

Every inch of him hurt like he had been run over by a herd of horses with extra sharp and hard hooves. His eyes came open to the overly bright room and he wished he'd never opened them. He closed them again. He had been so sure that he would've woken up in hell, where demons would be playing with his mind and body. He should have.

 

He didn't even remember how the Devil got him to say “yes”, but he had. He remembered there was some kind of plan that was supposed to trip the Evil Angel, but it back-fired, he just wished he knew what it was. Sam shuddered, he could still feel Lucifer under his skin. Like his body was being haunted. Perhaps the Evil Angel had lift something of himself in him. Was still inside his body waiting to come out.

 

Angry tears burned the back of his eyelids. His inner Dean Voice teased him for being such a girl. Which reminded him that Dean was out there somewhere. 'God Dean, please, please don't be dead... Please, God.' He chanted in his mind as he forced his eyes open again to the lightened room. It wasn't so harsh anymore, it had to be mid-morning by the light coming into the room.

 

“Dean.” It came out a dry whisper when it was supposed to be a strong yell, he tried to move but found his body not wanting to allow him.

 

“Easy, Sam,” Bobby's hands were gentle as they pressed him so gingerly into the soft bed. “You can't get up yet, boy, you need to rest.”

 

“Dean,” was all he could say, “Dean,” he was begging Bobby for answers. He had to know where his brother was. Those hot tears betrayed him as they bathed his checks, “Please, Dean.”

 

“Hush boy, he's just like you are. Hurt but you're both goin' to be fine. Me and the pig-headed angel are taking care of you and you better get better fast before I kill that jack-ass. “ Sammy closed his eyes and thanked God for the first time in months. Dean was going to be alright. His brother wasn't dead.

 

It didn't smooth the tears that came out of him, it seemed to just open the floodgates and let them out. He cried himself back into an easier sleep, his dreams so distant that he wouldn't remember when he woke.

 

~~~~~

 

Castiel was pacing again, he was going to wear a hole in Bobby's carpet like the human had warned him about. He didn't fear the human plucking his feathers, as he knew the man couldn't get to them. They were both just worn so thin by caring for the very injured Winchesters. Castiel could not lose Dean, could not lose the most important, thing, person, in his life.

 

He had always loved humans, but never like Dean, never did he want to join himself to the humans as he did Dean. The humans had always been his Father's children, they were to be cared for and watched over, or protected. His Father loved them so Castiel would as well. For anything his Father loved surely was worth loving.

 

When he had marked Dean by pulling him out of Hell he found himself being marked by the human. He had held Dean's soul in his hands, had put the man together, given him life, given him a part of himself. Seeing him so hurt and broken made him feel sick, made him want to scream. A part of him hated Michael for having to ride Dean and leaving him so broken.

 

He tried not to think of the human he himself was using. For that would only raise far too many thoughts he did not have time for. Angels weren't supposed to hate other Angels. They were supposed to love each other. Love their Father. He wanted to believe that his Father was the reason that both Dean and Sam Winchester were still alive, wanted to believe the plan was to let the fight happen but not kill the human host.

 

It seemed like it was, he couldn't forget his love for his Father even if he had walked away when they all needed him. It was driven so deep inside of him that he was supposed to believe, love, and honor his Father that he he had almost forgotten how strong each man was. That their love for each other was more than likely what saved them. Not a higher power who decided that this, His world, His children, were worth saving.

 

Angels weren't supposed to be bitter, well, they weren't supposed to feel anything but their love for the Father, but Dean had shown him feelings were important. Even with the pain that was eating away at his soul, his fear that he was sinning, because he was supposed to love no one as much as his Father. Castiel made his way to Dean's bedside, kneeling down as he saw many a human do when they spoke to the Father.

 

He took Dean's hand into his and looked at his face, “Please, don't leave me Dean.” he prayed.

 

~~~~~

 

“He's awake.”

 

“Dean?”

 

“No, Sam.”

 

“Oh, good, very good.”

~~~~~

 

“We have to take him to the hospital!”

 

“He is healing perfectly fine here, he needs to be here.”

 

The first sound that he heard when he woke was fighting, his Brother and his Angel were fighting over something. It took him half a second to get that the thing, the person, they were fighting over was him. He knew Sammy's whiny 'Can't-You-See-I'm-Right' voice, it was a bit like Dad's, not that he would ever tell Sammy that.

 

“It isn't safe, you are still being hunted, he is safe here.” Cas was being stubborn which wasn't surprising. The Angel could be very stubborn, very loud when he wanted to be. It was one of the things that Dean loved about him. He was also enjoying hearing Sammy and Cas butt heads. These were two of the most important people in his life, but fuck it wasn't fun to watch them fight when it wasn't really important, little things. Not that Dean wasn't important, just he was awake now so there wouldn't be a hospital trip.

 

“Can't a guy get any sleep around here?” He opened his eyes and wished he had moments ago as he saw the sadness and fear in Sammy's eyes, and the worry in Cas'. Both lightened a bit as he spoke and looked at them but if those looks were there something must be really wrong.

 

~~~~~

 

Dean could tell something had changed with Cas, the Angel was staying much closer to him that he ever did before. Dean wasn't sure if he minded or not. It was like Cas had forgotten all the lessons about personal space, at least when it came to Dean and some with Sam. Sam really didn't seem to mind, there were times when Dean thought he was seeing green when Cas touched Sammy.

 

He was sure he wasn't jealous, because that would be stupid, it wasn't like Cas and Sam were kissing or making lovey-dovey eyes at each other. No, it was a hand on his shoulder, shoulders touching. Eyes locking. It was like some of the quiet understanding that Dean and Sam had always shared had rubbed off on Cas, which Dean was very sure he'd rather be rubbing off on Cas. But it was the three of them, not that Bobby was left out in the cold, it just was that Dean noticed there was some kind of connection with the three of them. Sammy and him still bitched at each other but they weren't letting the other out of their eye sight. Dean knew without asking when Sam had a night full of nightmares, Sam knew when Dean didn't sleep to avoid his nightmares.

 

It didn't surprise anyone when Dean and Sam started to sleep in the same room, just to keep an eye on the other. It did surprise Dean when Cas started to spend his nights in the room too. He didn't really need to sleep, but he would sit bent over the desk in the room reading what ever book he had stolen from Bobby.

 

~~~~~

 

It happened a week after they left Bobby's to track some ghost that was eating kids or something.

(Dean didn't listen to Sammy that morning because Cas had picked that time to walk into the room, all he knew was that they were going to go send the ghost back to Hell, what else did he have to know?) It was right after the ghost had flung Dean across the room and he nearly broke his arm, Dean was supposed to be distracting the ghost while Sam burnt the bones.

 

They had done this a million times before, Cas had appeared out of no where his eyes cold as he warded the ghost away from Dean. Sam must of gotten the bones to burn because the ghost went up in flames, as it burned Cas turned and looked at him, he was pulled to his feet and into the Angel's arms. Castiel kissed him so silly that he didn't know what was happening until Sam had spoken and broken the spell.

 

“Did it ... oh shit.” Sam choked on his words, “You...two... want to be alone? Now might not be a good time, with the house burning down around us.”

 

“You are right Sam.” Castiel said as if they hadn't been caught kissing. Dean needed a few more seconds, need to clear his head, he did smell the smoke. He turned his head and looked at his brother, Sam's eyes were wide and his skin was pink with embarrassment. It looked good on Sammy, that innocence he hadn't seen in years. Dean really did miss it.

 

~~~~~

 

The next change that Dean noticed, happened only a few hours later when neither he nor Sam bitched which bed either of them was going to get. It wasn't like the fight ever mattered, Dean would always take the bed closest to the door because that's where he felt the safest and Sam would get the one further into the room. Yet, neither of them even tried to have their normal right before bed fight.

 

It was almost too quiet, too perfect as each of them just went about nightly tasks of cleaning the weapons, ordering food, and getting ready for bed. It was when Cas laid down next to Dean he remembered they were suppose to fight about the beds. When Dean lifted his head to tell Sam that they forgot something that he caught sight of his sleeping brother and decided not to bother.

 

Perhaps they were growing up, becoming more like adults they really were. Or perhaps they were both too damn tired to pretend to fight about something that never changed. It might be silly but Dean always looked forward to fighting over the little things. The things that didn't really matter. It made fighting about the bigger things maybe just a little easier because they had the small things too.

 

Little ways to blow off stream that would collect heated in both of their thick heads. He was distracted by Castiel's arms pulling him closer. “Cas, man,” Dean started to protest that he was in no such away a cuddlier when Cas spoke to him, low and steady.

 

“Sleep, Dean, it's late.”

 

It was said in that same strong clear order of a voice that told him that he wasn't allowed to die, that ordered him to live. He had followed that order, fighting for his life because he knew someone needed him to live. So instead of protesting like he really thought he should he pressed close to the Angel and allowed himself drift into the unsteady sleep that swallowed him whole.

 

~~~~~

 

The brothers were different, they held fast to each other and almost seemed to breathe for each other. He could see it, it almost was too painful to watch. There was also a beauty to it that Castiel was sure that no one else would see. His love for Dean was bleeding over to Sam in small different ways. He did not see Sam as a partner as he did Dean.

 

Or perhaps it was Dean's love for Sam that was bleeding into him. It was clear that they were becoming a family, more than a family. He knew this feeling from before, it was like when everything was good. When he didn't doubt his Father and his brothers were at his side. This was a safe feeling knowing that his family would fight with him not against him.

 

It also was an odd feeling knowing that he was finding this here with these humans rather than up in the Light of Heaven, Even if it felt good. This was the aftermath of the battle, it had changed each of them in ways that only the others could see. Cas knew he himself had changed but could not list the ways as he could list with Bobby, Sam, and Dean.

 

He could live with this for all the fear they had, the worries about what the cost might be of the battle that they had faced. Castiel found himself happy with this aftermath, happy with his arms tight around his human, around Dean. Dean's body warm against his. He could live with this, become happy because of this. As he ordered Dean off to sleep, he found himself closing his eyes enjoying the peace he only ever felt in Heaven.

 

-Fin

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing. If I did there would be less shirt wearing for the boys.


End file.
